


Jonquil: Affection Returned

by Laylah



Category: Persona 2
Genre: Canon Divergence, Except Everything Is Fine, First Kiss, M/M, Post-Innocent Sin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2021-01-15 19:35:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21258518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laylah/pseuds/Laylah
Summary: Jun frowns. "We're at the cabin. What's wrong with the road?""They had a mudslide!" Trust Maya to sound more excited than upset even about something like this. "Nobody can get up the mountain until a road maintenance crew can clear it away and make sure there was no damage!""Oh," Jun says. That seems inadequate. "Good thing we brought food."





	Jonquil: Affection Returned

**Author's Note:**

  * For [foxjar](https://archiveofourown.org/users/foxjar/gifts).

The rain starts when they're barely more than halfway up the mountain. Tatsuya drives as fast as he can but they're still soaked to the skin by the time they reach the cabin. Jun's teeth won't stop chattering despite his best attempts to control his shivers.

They're the first ones to arrive; the driveway is empty until Tatsuya parks his bike there. Silently—some things don't need explaining—they unload their overnight bags and groceries from the bike's saddlebags. At least those seem to have been watertight, so they'll have dry clothes when they get inside. Jun's fingers are numb from the cold and it looks like Tatsuya feels it, too, fumbling with the key before he manages to unlock the cabin door.

Some part of Jun is expecting warmth when they walk inside, and his heart sinks when the door opens into a dim entry only barely warmer than the outside. Still, Maya would tell him to be positive, wouldn't she?

"At least it's dry," he says. "And it should warm up once we get a fire built."

Tatsuya nods. He still doesn't seem to like to waste words. He smiles, though, that gentle brief flicker that makes Jun feel warm behind his ribs no matter what the weather is doing.

They put their things down in the larger of the two bedrooms—there are three boys in the group and only two girls, so they'll need more room—and take turns changing into dry clothes. Then, as Tatsuya is starting to pile kindling in the hearth, Jun's phone rings.

"Maya?" He paces toward the window; the connection is bad, this far from the city. "Are you guys all right?"

"Oh yeah, we're fine!" He can hear Lisa and Eikichi squabbling in the background, but it's impossible to make out what the problem is through the tinny little speaker. "Buuuut.... The road's not so fine. Did you head up already?"

Jun frowns. "We're at the cabin. What's wrong with the road?"

"They had a mudslide!" Trust Maya to sound more excited than upset even about something like this. "Nobody can get up the mountain until a road maintenance crew can clear it away and make sure there was no damage!"

"Oh," Jun says. That seems inadequate. "Good thing we brought food."

Maya laughs. "That's the spirit! Sorry we can't make it, but we'll pick another weekend and try again. The Masked Circle can't be held back for long!"

"R-right." Sometimes it still overwhelms him, how easily Maya has accepted them all back into her life. "I guess we'll keep an eye on the news and be back in a few days."

When he hangs up, Tatsuya looks up at him from the fireplace. "Things okay?"

Jun explains. Tatsuya nods and turns back to the fireplace, where the kindling hasn't caught yet. Jun turns toward the window, wrapping his arms around himself for warmth. The rain pours down outside, too heavy for the season, making the trees a blur of black and green.

They haven't had much time together since all the fighting ended. Things that were easy to say with death breathing down their necks—_I'll stay with you always_ and _I'll never leave your side_ and all the other desperate promises that moved even demons—are much harder to express when they're out of danger. But now....

He hears movement behind him and doesn't turn, not sure where they're going from here. He hugs himself a little tighter. A gust of wind makes raindrops splatter loudly against the window.

Tatsuya puts a hand on his shoulder, solid and so warm. "Fire's started." He leaves his hand there, though, where Jun can bask in that point of contact.

After a few seconds of steeling his nerves Jun steps back slightly, so he can lean against Tatsuya's chest. Already this is so much, after years of isolation. He feels like he must be pushing his luck. But Tatsuya's other arm wraps around his middle, holding him there. Jun's shoulders relax and he finds his hands coming to rest on Tatsuya's arm. It's comfortable. Comforting.

Eventually he turns so he can look Tatsuya in the eyes. "I'm glad you're here with me," he says. _I've missed you for so long_, he doesn't add. _I'm so glad the things I remembered weren't true._

Tatsuya seems to understand anyway. He says so little, maybe that makes it easier for him to recognize what someone else isn't saying in return. He smiles, and nods once, and leans down carefully for a kiss.

It's one of the best moments Jun can remember. Tatsuya's lips are soft and his arms are solid and Jun leans into him. He doesn't push, just lets this gentle kiss last for a long moment before he pulls back.

They're going to be stuck up here for the next few days with no distractions from each other, nothing to do but make up for lost time. Jun's cheeks get hot. "I... haven't ever done anything like this," he admits. Better to say it than to have Tatsuya disappointed in him.

Tatsuya shakes his head. "Me neither."

Jun stares. "Didn't everyone at Seven Sisters think you were the coolest guy at school?"

"Doesn't mean I wanted them," Tatsuya says with a little shrug.

_I only have eyes for Jun_ he said in the temple, when Lisa's shadow made everyone confront her feelings. It sounded like a playboy answer at the time, the kind that's too much, too dramatic, to be completely honest. But maybe that old pessimism was actually the inaccurate part. Maybe Tatsuya meant—means—every word.

"I guess these next few days will give us plenty of time to practice," Jun says, and the way Tatsuya smiles at that warms him all the way through. He stretches up and Tatsuya meets him for their second kiss.

It feels like the whole world changed when they confronted Nyarlathotep and his lies. This is a life Jun couldn't imagine just a few months ago, but now it's real and it's his. He slips his tongue into Tatsuya's mouth and Tatsuya makes a soft noise that he'll treasure forever, no matter how many more come after it. This is the beginning, and it's beautiful.


End file.
